J.K. Rowling’s novel The Casual Vacancy is set in the fictional English town of Pagford.
Pagford is the main setting of Rowling’s first novel for adults, published in 2012. The story begins after the death of Barry Fairbrother, a parish councillor, creates a vacant seat on the local council. A bitter election campaign exposes tensions involving class, poverty, drugs, family, and local politics.
Pagford is fictional, but the novel presents it as an ordinary English community with competing neighborhoods and institutions. The nearby housing estate of the Fields is especially important to the plot. The contrast between Pagford and the Fields drives many of the town’s political conflicts.
Readers sometimes confuse Pagford with Little Whinging, the fictional Surrey suburb associated with Harry Potter, or with real places from Rowling’s childhood. Pagford belongs specifically to The Casual Vacancy and is not part of the wizarding world.